The invention is placed particularly, although not exclusively, in the specific sector of cooking ovens, of the type known as “with trolley”, in which provision is made in the cooking chamber for housing a baking pan-supporting structure mounted on a movable trolley. The structure with baking pan-supporting shelves is intended to be received within the cooking chamber while the lower frame of the trolley, provided with wheels, remains outside the chamber. In order to allow such partial housing of the trolley, the door of the oven, suitable for closing the cooking chamber in a sealed manner, has at the bottom a recess, such as not to interfere with the frame of the trolley when the latter is housed in the cooking chamber. In the area of the opening defined by the recess, the seal is ensured by the action of a gasket provided on the door and co-operating with a corresponding front surface of the frame of the trolley, the latter in its turn being pressed against part of the gasket provided in the area of the opening of the oven, said gasket interacting for the remainder with the door of the oven, in order to ensure the sealed closure of the cooking chamber.
In these ovens it is necessary to be able to ensure the sealed closure of the door also in the absence of the baking pan-supporting trolley, in particular in the stages of preheating the oven, when it is necessary to ensure the insulation of the cooking chamber without heat dispersion.
In the aforesaid stages, when the baking pan-supporting trolley is withdrawn from the cooking chamber, the sealing thereof is typically ensured by using a closure plate removably hooked to the door or to the oven structure, in the region of the lower recess provided in the door. This plate therefore serves to take the place of the corresponding front surface of the trolley frame and is suitable for co-operating with the gaskets provided on the door and at the opening of the chamber, so as to ensure sealing following the closure of the oven door. An example of such a sealing plate is described in US 2006/0102164.
Another known solution provides for mounting a closure plate of the aforesaid type on the door by means of a hinging mechanism in order to displace it from a rest position, not interfering with the trolley, to an operative position for sealed closure, in the absence of the trolley.
In both the solutions indicated, however, there are limitations owing both to the necessity for the assembly/disassembly of the plate on/from the oven depending on the operating requirements, and the complexity of the hinging mechanism to be provided when the plate is fitted at the edge of the closure door. In this second case the hinging device is moreover subject to possible malfunctions owing to the action of cooking liquids and fats which may compromise the functioning thereof or which in any case necessitate cleaning of the mechanism at a certain frequency in order to ensure its overall efficiency.